This is the day I make you mine.

Upon reflection on my last several blog entries, I am a bit dismayed at the fact that I come across as a fairly negative person. I suppose that could be because I write as a form of therapy, and I tend to need therapy most when I'm upset. But the fact is, I am a very happy person. I have an amazing life! I am very thankful for everything I have!
Did I tell you about my wedding day? I didn't. And I should have, because it was the most amazing day of my life.
June, 2009 was the least sunny June in recorded history. It rained practically daily. It was chilly every day. So as a bride, planning my outdoor garden wedding ceremony, I was nervous. Yes there was a rain plan, but I didn't like it. I wanted to ceremony that I had imagined for the 18 months since we had booked the venue. I started tracking the weather 10 days out. Which in hindsight, was a waste of time.
We met with the venue 2 days before the wedding to discuss final details. I was told that at 5:30 on my wedding day they would make a final decision as to where the ceremony would be. At that time the florist would start setting up the archway. Once it was set up, it could not be moved. I tried to imagine it placed in each of the possible locations. First choice was of course, the garden. The beautiful sunken garden that won my heart the moment I saw it. If the grass was too wet or the skies were threatening, we would move it to the inner courtyard. Not a terrible option, just not what I wanted. The final option - the dreaded rain plan - was to have the ceremony under the port cochere, the overhang from the main entrance where horse drawn carriages would have pulled up to the mansion to pick people up. This, to me, was the worst-case scenario.
On the morning of June 13th - my wedding day - I woke up to sunny skies and very comfortable temperatures. My heart soared! This was my wedding day and it was perfect! We spent the day getting ready for the 7pm service.
At about 5:30, I was all dressed and being photographed in the living room of my parent's house. Somewhere in the background I heard the phone ring. I heard talking. I stood up to go outside to take photos and my bridesmaids and my parents came around me and broke the news that they were setting up the archway in the inner courtyard. Tears. Immediate, unstoppable tears. I didn't understand! It was sunny out!! My dad gently told me that they had all been watching the doppler all day and there was a storm predicted right over our venue at 7pm. Of course. With encouraging words from my best friends, i did my best to stop the tears.
We went outside and took more photos. I begged my poor dad to call the venue and ask them to check the doppler again. He reminded me that once they set up the archway it couldn't be moved. I argued that the sun was still out. He told me that if we got to the venue and it was not raining, we could have the ceremony in the garden. We just wouldn't have the archway. I agreed, though the idea of not having the archway was really sad to me - this all might make me sound like a spoiled princess who needs to get her way, but trust me, when you've spent 18 months picturing something so monumentally important in your life, every detail is set, the smallest things feel important. - So as we climbed into the limo, my dad called the venue and informed them that if it wasn't raining, I wanted to have the ceremony in the garden.
The whole ride to the venue I focused. I was rolling down the window, inspecting the sky. Briefly it rained while we rode. I was making semi-jokes about moving the archway into the garden by myself, in my dress. I said I would ask the groomsmen to move it. In my head I was praying. I was praying to God, to my grandparents and hubs grandparents, to my pets, to anyone who might have been listening to please grant me a miracle. I admitted to knowing it was ridiculous to care so much about something so insignificant. It just mattered to me. I was also preparing myself. I was coaching myself that I needed to be happy because in the end, it didn't matter at all where the ceremony was. What mattered was that I was going to be married to my best friend. And that it would be a beautiful ceremony no matter what. But I would be lying if I said my heart wasn't a little bit heavy.
The limo pulled through the heavy gates and onto the property of the castle. As we rounded the corner, I looked out my window towards the garden. I saw chairs! They were setting up to have the ceremony outside! Wait - I thought- don't get too excited. They likely set up both places so that we could make last minute moves. But then, as we rounded the corner I saw a truck parked at the entrance of the garden AND a group of people was lowering the archway from the bed!! I shrieked! I couldn't believe it!! They were doing what they said couldn't be done! They were moving my archway! And again, I cried. I felt so grateful.
We drove up to the castle and the venue coordinator opened my limo door. "Thank you so much for moving my archway!" I exclaimed. She said she was happy to do it.
Once we were up in the bridal suite waiting for guests to arrive, the coordinator came up to me and said, "The storm that was overhead has dissipated. The worst you will get is a few sprinkles during the ceremony, but that's it."
She (and you) may think it was purely scientific, this sudden change in weather. I know it was something much more profound. It was a wedding day gift from my Mommom, who promised me on her deathbed that she'd be with me on my wedding day. It was a gift from my hub's Nana, who would have been so happy to see this day come. It was a miracle from my animals, who know that I carry their beautiful souls in my heart everywhere I go.
I married my husband in a wonderful ceremony in front of 200 very special people. We stood before a beautiful archway and said our vows. Throughout the ceremony, from the surrounding woods, you could hear a frog's soft, repetitive croak. It was a beautiful sound. Towards the end of the ceremony, it began to sprinkle. Soft, sporadic drops. And I couldn't feel a thing. I was on cloud nine. I was feeling (and I still feel) blessed beyond measure and so completely sure of the gifts I received on that day.